Well, so far am disappointed to say the least. I just made a 500+ mile trip from Athens, AL to Sallisaw, OK with the Max Power on level 3. I got the WORST hiway mileage I have ever gotten.................17.5 mpg :eek:. I'll have to admit, I was driving into a headwind the whole way and it was significant most of the way. The last time I drove the same trip into the wind I had the EVO on (original) level 1 and got 18 mpg.
Drivability was good and tranny shifted fine but if that is as good as it gets for mileage this unit will be going back! I have not given uo on it yet. I will be going back home on thursday night or friday morning. We'll see what it does then. I usually average 19+ on this trip with the EVO.

yeah i drove around with the hyper-pac on my truck on level 3 and noticed it was a very nice juicy tune, but sucked the fuel. for fuel mileage i thought the predator on the 85 tune was alot better for mileage.

I have found that if you leave the tune in for a a while, the truck runs better, after learning the extra power from the tune is there. Also, get on the highway and set the cruise control to 65-67 mph and you should see mileage increases. You will not see much of an increase if you are driving 75 mph on the highway. I got my best mileage increases on level 2. I have an older Hypertech tuner. Another trick if you want to drive faster than 65, is tuck in behind someone driving the speed you want and let them break the wind, and you will see increases. Follow behind a big rig, and you will get the draft!!!!!! Like in NASCAR!!

I set the cruise on ~72mph. I am going tp try level 2 on the way home.

yeah i drove around with the hyper-pac on my truck on level 3 and noticed it was a very nice juicy tune, but sucked the fuel. for fuel mileage i thought the predator on the 85 tune was alot better for mileage.

What kind of mpg gains are you seeing from the Preadtor. I had on on my LLY and loved it. I had one on my LBZ and was not as impressed. I am thinking I didn't give it enough time.

I see 16.5 city. Haven't had it on a long trip but Unit453 got 22 mpg.

Not with the Hypertech I didnt.

That was with Predator on 85.

Thats true. I am sorry.

Well, so far am disappointed to say the least. I just made a 500+ mile trip from Athens, AL to Sallisaw, OK with the Max Power on level 3. I got the WORST hiway mileage I have ever gotten.................17.5 mpg :eek:. I'll have to admit, I was driving into a headwind the whole way and it was significant most of the way. The last time I drove the same trip into the wind I had the EVO on (original) level 1 and got 18 mpg.
Drivability was good and tranny shifted fine but if that is as good as it gets for mileage this unit will be going back! I have not given uo on it yet. I will be going back home on thursday night or friday morning. We'll see what it does then. I usually average 19+ on this trip with the EVO.

You might also consider that #2 diesel is at the pumps now :(

Does the max energy save the stock tune like the superchip flashpaq does or do you have to save it everytime like their old programmers?

I'm hoping the lack of fuel economy is the winter fuel...At least that's what I've been telling myself because my 30 days to return the Max Energy are almost up and I can't make up my mind. I'm sure the fuel here in Michigan has been the winter blend since I got the tuner 3 weeks ago. The best MPG I got was 19.2 empty and 11.9 average(1300 miles) towing 9k trailer from Detroit to Tennesee and back(Up/down mountains). Still trying to decide weather to keep it or not. I have only driven it on level 2.

I had the same experience with the Max Energy on my CC dually. Power was great, from 2500 rpms up. My truck seldom sees that much. Mileage was no better than stock, worse most of the time. Not what I'm looking for. I returned it.

From reading reports on this board, the Predator sounds like a possibility. But I don't really want to spend the money with no guarantees. I'm still waiting to be convinced.

Well, so far am disappointed to say the least. I just made a 500+ mile trip from Athens, AL to Sallisaw, OK with the Max Power on level 3. I got the WORST hiway mileage I have ever gotten.................17.5 mpg :eek:. I'll have to admit, I was driving into a headwind the whole way and it was significant most of the way. The last time I drove the same trip into the wind I had the EVO on (original) level 1 and got 18 mpg.
Drivability was good and tranny shifted fine but if that is as good as it gets for mileage this unit will be going back! I have not given uo on it yet. I will be going back home on thursday night or friday morning. We'll see what it does then. I usually average 19+ on this trip with the EVO.
How did you calculate your MPG?

Does the max energy save the stock tune like the superchip flashpaq does or do you have to save it everytime like their old programmers?
It saves the stock tune. Switching between power levels is very fast.

Darnell....is anyone looking into the fuel economy issue's?? I only ask because with a light foot I'm not getting any better than stock.....towing it's a bit worse,maybe it is the WINTER FUEL. The tune(level 2) is smooth but it seems some others are getting better economy.

I would bet its winter fuel not the tune...

If you check it stock and programmed, back to back, does it make any difference what the fuel is as long as it's the same each way? Maybe I'm off but I was hoping a tune would be an improvement over stock, regardless of what stock was. Winter fuel may hurt it both ways but the tune should still be better. Am I wrong in that thinking?

How did you calculate your MPG?

Hand calculated: miles driven (GPS verified) divided by gallons used (filled to the brim with no foam every time)

Well I finished my trip and here is the data. I have it listed by each leg. The column on the left is the trip out and the right column is the corresponding leg of the trip on the return home.

17.4 mpg Stage 3 20.6 mpg Stock setting
17.7 mpg Stage 3 18.3 mpg Stage 2

I while I was in Oklahoma, I got 17.1 mpg doing about a 50/50 mix of hiway and rural driving on Stage 2. The last time I made this same trip I had the EVO on level 1. I got 19.4 mpg on the way out, 18.1 mpg with the 50/50 hiway rural mix, and 19.5 mpg on the way back.

Needless to say, I am disappointed with the Max Energy. It is hard to believe that I lost 1-3 mpg with the tuner. The driving habits were the same and the fuel was the same. The difference in the leg where I got 17.7 on stage 3 and 18.3 on stage 2 was probably the wind. It was windy on teh way out and there was no wind on the way back home. I'm sure the difference on the second leg would have been a little less if the wind had not been blowing on the way out. But for me the difference maker was the trip home where I got 18.3 on stage 2 and 20.6 with stock tuning.

All miles were GPS verified. All fill-ups were "to the brim" with no foam. All calculations were done by hand. The DIC was all over the board. Sometimes right on the money (mostly stage 3), sometimes optimistic (stage 2), and sometimes low (stock).

There it is, my report FWIW. It is what it is, but I am disappointed and I guess the unit will be going back.

Other than the mileage, how did you like the tune?

The tunes were very good. I didn't even get the shift flares that most people talk about. I did get on it pretty good shortly after I intalled the tune just to see how it would run and it didn't flare much even then. It doesn't seem top have a lot down low compared to others that I have tried, but it will go pretty good on the top end. I will probably tow with it a time or two before I send it back just to see how it does. I think it is a good product and from everything I have read it is a safe tuner to tow with on the higher settings. It just hurt my fuel economy too much to justify running it.

The tunes were very good. I didn't even get the shift flares that most people talk about. I did get on it pretty good shortly after I intalled the tune just to see how it would run and it didn't flare much even then. It doesn't seem top have a lot down low compared to others that I have tried, but it will go pretty good on the top end. I will probably tow with it a time or two before I send it back just to see how it does. I think it is a good product and from everything I have read it is a safe tuner to tow with on the higher settings. It just hurt my fuel economy too much to justify running it.
Cowdoc,

Would you consider running on stage 1 to see how that affects your MPG? While I don't know you or your driving style I think it worth checking. I know from past experiences that sometimes the extra power from stages 2 & 3 can cause people to unintentionally change their driving style and subsequently affect their fuel economy. Again I don’t know your driving style just trying to figure out why you’re fuel economy is low.

It's not just his fuel economy.....it seems to be the consensus with every post I've read. UNIT453's direct comparison between the Hyperpac and the Predator seems to be spot on and mirror all the posts I've read when discussing fuel economy and tuners, including my own. Other tuners seem to be getting considerably better fuel economy. If I recall correctly UNIT453 got nearly 3 MPG better with the Predator. Hypertech really needs to look into this. Maybe there is a valid reason for this, if so, I would like to know.

x3.

I tried all levels and was as easy on the pedal as possible. Actual mileage was never any better than stock and most times a little worse. The DIC sure looked good at 23 but the meter on the pump said different. The power is very good from 2500 rpms up. It'll definitely set you back in the seat. But for my purposes, running empty or towing 20,000 lbs, at 65-70 mph, I saw no benefit. It's not a bad product, just not what I am looking for.

Cowdoc,

Would you consider running on stage 1 to see how that affects your MPG? While I don't know you or your driving style I think it worth checking. I know from past experiences that sometimes the extra power from stages 2 & 3 can cause people to unintentionally change their driving style and subsequently affect their fuel economy. Again I don’t know your driving style just trying to figure out why you’re fuel economy is low.

I might if I get the chance. I won't be making any road trips for a while and it is difficult to do a comparison with my everyday driving unless it is done over 3-4 weeks. I don't think driving style has anything to do with my recent road trip because it was all done with the cruise on. In addition, I don't really feel (SOP) that there are any gains in the lower rpm range (normal driving) so unintentional changes i driving style are unlikely as well. We'll see what we can get donr though.